Amazon 2017 Back to School Sales Jump 35% in First Two Weeks
One Click Retail research finds Amazon dominates sales of Office Products, Apparel and Shoes as the Back to School period begins.
Aug 08, 2017, 08:00 ET
SALT LAKE CITY, Aug. 8, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- In the first two weeks of the Back to School shopping season, Amazon's sales of school supplies have grown by 35% YoY, according to One Click Retail data. Amazon sales of Laptops and Accessories have already earned more than $25M, Tablet sales have nearly doubled (98% growth) and Youth Apparel is up by 61% over the same two weeks in 2016.
In Q3 2016, Amazon drove 82% of the total U.S. e-commerce growth. This is in part because of Prime Day, which occurs annually at the beginning of Q3, but the bulk of the quarter is taken up by the Back to School shopping season, which runs from mid-July to mid-September. In 2016, Back to School sales grew by 9% during the first two weeks and went on to record 20% growth over the season. This year, with Amazon sales already up by 35%, suggests a total growth potential of over 80% for Back to School 2017.
Office Products
According to One Click Retail's Office Products report, Amazon's sales of Office Products grew by 25% to reach over $2B in 2016, while remaining Brick & Mortar U.S. sales grew by only 1%. Accounting for more than 20% of total U.S. sales of office products, Amazon's double-digit growth continues into Back to School 2017: Tablet sales grew by 98%, Laptop Accessories by 45%, Laptops by 8% and Calculators by 6%.
Apparel & Shoes
Amazon's sales of Apparel also grew by 25% in 2016 to a value of $3.4B, while Shoes grew more rapidly, with a growth 35% bringing Amazon's 2016 shoe sales to $1.6B, according to reports from One Click Retail. Both the Apparel and Shoes product groups see a predictable annual shift in shopping habits during Back to School, with parents turning to Amazon to purchase shoes and clothing for their school-aged children. In the last two weeks of July 2017, this trend was spearheaded by Youth Apparel (61% YoY growth), and Backpacks (24% YoY growth), both nearly tripling their rate of growth from the same period in 2016.
"Early back to school shopping on Amazon is up 35% in 2017 vs only 9% in 2016," explains Spencer Millerberg, One Click Retail CEO. "While this early indication doesn't necessarily predict the more sales-heavy remainder of 'Back-to-School' season, it does show early velocity. It paints a picture that more parents are multi-tasking on Amazon during 'back-to-school night' for those supplies vs stopping by the store on the way home."
Methodology
One Click Retail uses a combination of website indexing, machine learning and proprietary software to estimate weekly online sales figures at the SKU level on Amazon.
About One Click Retail
One Click Retail is a market leader in eCommerce data measurement, sales analytics and search optimization for brand manufacturers in North America and Europe. Using a combination of website indexing, machine learning and proprietary software to estimate weekly online sales and traffic figures at the SKU level, OCR has developed the most accurate, trusted and reliable data platform in the marketplace. The OCR Product Suite provides 1st and 3rd party business intelligence across the largest online retailers such as Amazon, Walmart, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Macy’s, and Home Depot. The world's top brands, such as Procter & Gamble, Panasonic, Nestle, Philips, and Sony, rely on OCR insights to drive sales and profitability across eCommerce.
One Click Retail was acquired by Ascential plc in 2016.
For more information, visit the company's website, www.oneclickretail.com, and visit One Click Retail on Twitter and LinkedIn.
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SOURCE One Click Retail